


By the Riverbank

by Destiny_Writes



Series: Understanding [2]
Category: A3! (Video Game)
Genre: Blushing, First Crush, Flashbacks, Fluff, M/M, Self-Doubt, hand holding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-22
Updated: 2020-03-22
Packaged: 2021-02-28 20:42:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,301
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23253397
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Destiny_Writes/pseuds/Destiny_Writes
Summary: Yuki is curious to know what happened between Tenma and Sakuya lately, so Tenma decides to tell him.
Relationships: Rurikawa Yuki/Sakisaka Muku, Sakuma Sakuya/Sumeragi Tenma
Series: Understanding [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1671952
Comments: 1
Kudos: 50





	By the Riverbank

**Author's Note:**

> If you haven't read my other A3! fanfic, "Understanding", then you probably won't know about the side relationship going on between Yuki and Muku, so be sure to check that out if you're interested. This is also set four months after Yuki confesses, so if you have read my other fic, you'll know what's going on at the moment.
> 
> (Btw, if you're curious to know why Tenma got mad, it was because Yuki told Muku that he was cute, and Tenma was jealous of them.)

“Why were you so mad earlier?” Yuki asked. The dorm room he shared with Tenma was pretty silent, as he was sewing a separate project he was working on, and Tenma was trimming his precious bonsai once more.

Tenma sighed, scissors clipping a few times before he spoke. “Dunno. I wasn’t thinking before I said it. Sorry if you were offended or anything.” He looked over at Yuki, who pulled a needle through the fabric, concentrating.

“No, I wasn’t offended.” He turned on his sewing machine, a rattling noise filling the room, along with the clipping of Tenma’s scissors. Neither said a word for a while, both too focused on their work to continue the conversation. That was, until Yuki spoke once more. “Were you jealous?”

He hoped that Tenma didn’t take it as an insult, he was actually being serious as he said that. It was silent for a while, long enough for Yuki to wonder if he heard him at all. Before long, however, Tenma finally spoke up. “...Yeah.”

Yuki hardly expected him to say yes, in fact, that was the last thing he’d expect from someone like Tenma. To think that one of the most popular figures in Japan, no, in the world was jealous of someone like him, was surprising. It made Yuki seem superior to Tenma, in a way. “I didn’t think you’d be the type to get jealous of people. What, you want a significant other too?”

Tenma thought for a moment. “Well… It’s more specific than that…” He muttered. Despite how quiet Tenma was, and how loud the sewing machine’s rattling was, Yuki was still able to hear him. 

He turned off the sewing machine and spun around on his stool to face the other, curiosity getting the better of him. “Who’s the lucky person?”

The question caught Tenma off guard, as his eyes widened and his face turned a shade of pink. “Uhh, um… It’s…” He struggled to answer, seeming to shrink smaller and smaller under Yuki’s gaze. He debated whether he should say it or not, but decided that letting it out was better than keeping it in. He straightened his posture and confessed, “It’s Sakuya.”

Yuki wasn’t surprised. “How long has it been since you’ve noticed it?” He asked.

“Well, it hasn’t been long, just a couple days ago…” Tenma replied, cheeks still flushed from embarrassment

Yuki smirked. “What happened?” he said smugly. Whether it was to annoy Tenma or just from plain curiosity, he couldn’t help himself from asking. 

Tenma scowled at him, an irritated expression on his face. “I never said that you could poke your nose into my business!”

Yuki thought about his reply for a second. “Hm… Well, I did come to you first for relationship advice. Why don’t you come and ask me too? Since, you know, I’m actually in a relationship.” Tenma stiffened, realization making him flush a little.

“Ugh… Fine, I guess I’ll tell you.” He grumbled.

____ __________ ____

It was chilly out, as the Autumn days slowly turned into Winter ones. The trees were completely bare, but hardly any leaves littered the ground, thanks to the people that raked them up afterwards. The sky was covered with a sheet of grey clouds, blocking the sun from view. It was a very gloomy atmosphere, but it was enough to make a certain Tenma Sumeragi take a stroll around the town.

He was planning to go out for about 30 minutes or so, but of course he’d get lost trying to find his way back. It was frustrating when you had no sense of direction, and he was regretting not taking anyone with him to help him get back. He checked his phone. Dead. If he didn’t get back to the dorms soon, surely everybody would be worried about him.

He was starting to lose all hope until a certain voice from afar caught his attention.

There, standing by the riverbank, was Sakuya Sakuma, his former troupe leader friend. He was holding a script out in front of him and practicing some lines, something Tenma didn’t see very often. Maybe it was because he didn’t visit the riverbank much? Whatever it was, he started heading towards him, desperate for help.

Once he was close enough, he opened his mouth to speak, but then got distracted by Sakuya’s acting. He was still a newbie, that was for sure, but Tenma could see the improvement in his words and actions, despite how Sakuya’s back was still turned to him. Sakuya then turned around to face him, and Tenma saw the brightest smile on his face as he ran over, obviously excited to see him. It made a small blush appear on Tenma’s cheeks, though he wasn’t sure why he was flustered over a simple thing like that.

“Tenma!” He shouted with excitement. “I didn’t think I’d see you around here! Uhm… why are you here?” He asked, tilting his head to the side a little.

“Uh, well…” Tenma didn’t want to admit it to Sakuya, but he had no other way of getting back besides asking him. He took a deep breath and decided it was better than trying to venture back by himself. “I decided to take a walk around the town, and uh… I got a little lost…” He muttered, embarrassed.

Sakuya looked at him and chuckled. “Maybe you should’ve brought someone else with you.” He scanned the area before looking at Tenma again. “Well, in the meantime, how about you practice with me!” He exclaimed, grabbing Tenma’s wrist and dragging him over to the riverside.

“H-Hey, wait!” Tenma retorted, making Sakuya stop in his tracks. He turned around to face him again, raising an eyebrow. “The others will start to worry if I’m gone for too long, and uh… my phone’s dead.” He confessed once more. Sakuya, instead, smiled at him sweetly, picking out his phone from his pocket and dialling the director’s number.

Sakuya held it up to his ear and waited for a moment before speaking. “Hey, director? Tenma’s with me right now and he got lost, so I’m just gonna let you know that you don’t have to worry if he comes back late.” Tenma winced, he didn’t expect for Sakuya to get straight to the point like that. He had no doubt that Izumi would tease him about it once he got back. Or worse, she tells the others and they start to tease him with her. “Oh, why am I calling? Well, Tenma’s phone died, so that’s why he couldn’t contact you.” Great. He was hoping that the director wouldn’t ask, but it’s just his luck that she did.

Sakuya then bid her goodbye before hanging up and slipping the phone back into his pocket. “Well, now that that’s over, c’mon!” He grabbed Tenma’s wrist one more and made his way back to the edge of the riverbank, stopping once he was close enough. “You can practice with me!” He exclaimed, handing over his script to Tenma.

He raised an eyebrow with uncertainty. “How can I practice with you? We only have one script.” He stated the obvious, which made Sakuya flush a little.

“Oh… you’re right.” He muttered awkwardly. But that didn’t stop him from smiling once more, taking the script back. “Then you can watch me practice. Oh, and then you can evaluate me afterwards! You are the more experienced actor, after all.” He grabbed Tenma’s wrist and dragged him away from the riverbank, just enough for him to have a clear view of Sakuya like he was at the very front of an audience. “You’re fine with it, right?” He asked him, eyes full of anticipation.

“Huh?” Tenma was too distracted by Sakuya’s excitement to notice what he was saying, but he agreed anyway. Anything that Sakuya sets up couldn’t be too bad, right? “I’m just supposed to evaluate you when you’re done?” He asked, making sure to claim whatever he said before he got anything wrong. Sakuya nodded before running back to where he was before, clearing his throat and holding his script in front of him. He looked toward him for affirmation before he began. Tenma smiled a little before saying, “Whenever you’re ready.”

Sakuya, Tenma had to admit, was amazing. As he watched him up there, confident in all his actions and words, his heart fluttered. He wasn’t sure why, but he found that he liked the feeling, and that he wanted to stay here like this, watching Sakuya for as long as he could. For some reason, he felt that he didn’t need to put up that high-and-mighty facade he used around others, he could just be himself around Sakuya, and he wouldn’t judge him any other way.

Before long, Sakuya finished his act. “How was it?” He asked Tenma, running up to him excitedly.

Tenma smiled at him. “It was really good. I liked your movements and your expression was on point, but I just wanted to confirm one thing.” He took Sakuya’s script and flipped through it for a bit before looking back at him. “How many times have you read this part?” He asked, holding together a few pages indicating where he was to work on.

Sakuya looked over it before responding. “I’ve read the entire thing out loud about seven times over the past few days, but I haven’t worked on this specific part by itself.” He said, looking back at Tenma.

“Alright then. If that’s the case then I want you to look at the audience more on this part. I noticed that some parts are fully memorized, but in this one, you’re looking back at the script a lot. Try to get off-script as much as possible here.” He informed him, looking back at him once he was done. “But other than that, you’re doing pretty good.” He held out his script to him, grinning.

Sakuya, however, was still staring at him, lost in space. “Uhh… hello? Earth to Sakuya?” He asked, waving his hand in front of his face. Sakuya, realizing that he was trying to get his attention, flushed and apologized.

“Sorry, Tenma! I was just thinking of how good of a teacher you are when it comes to acting!” At this, Tenma flushed, embarrassed.

“R-Really now?” Tenma said, as Sakuya took the script back. He didn’t know that he looked up to him in such a way, especially since his personality wasn’t fit for a celebrity like him. People would expect him to be a kind and trusting actor, not someone who is selfish, rude, and someone who can’t think before he speaks. Should he let Sakuya see him as that, even though he’s not worthy?

Sakuya must have noticed Tenma’s doubts about himself, as the disappointment clearly showed on his face. “Hey.” Sakuya started, reaching for his hand. Tenma let him take it, looking up from the ground to face him. “I know that you don’t have the best of personalities when you’re off stage, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t help others.” Tenma’s eyes widened a little, more attentive to what Sakuya was saying. “I mean, you’ve been acting for a long time, but now you’re in a company with actors that haven’t. You can teach others while teaching yourself along the way, and what’s more, you can enjoy it when you do!” He gripped his hand a little tighter, smiling. “You were happy when I was acting in front of you, I could tell. And don’t think that the others hate you because of your personality, because we’re really glad to have you, despite what they might say. So just… don’t doubt yourself, alright?” 

Sakuya finished, but it was something about him that made a sudden change in the atmosphere. It could’ve been his smile, as it seemed less wide and a little softer as he stared at him. While they were standing here, holding their hands together like this… it just felt right. In a way that Tenma could never explain. Their eyes were fixed on each other for longer than just a minute, before Tenma broke from it first.

“Umm, w-we should get back.” He stuttered, looking at the sky, as it was almost sunset at the time. Sakuya nodded, letting go of Tenma’s hand and gesturing for him to follow. He did, and soon they were on their way home without a second thought. But despite the fact that he was finally returning home to rest, a part of him wished he could’ve stayed with Sakuya longer. ‘I can ask him if we could do it again later.’ He decided, smiling as he followed Sakuya back to the dorms.

____ __________ ____

“That’s what happened?” Yuki asked, eyes wide.

Tenma nodded. “Yeah, that’s the long and short of it.” He picked up his scissors again and continued working, determined to finish trimming before it got too late into the night.

Yuki thought about what Tenma told him for a moment before speaking up once more. “I can see why you’d fall for him if that happened. Did you actually ask him if you could do it again, though?”

Tenma flushed, completely forgetting about that. “Um… No.” He muttered silently, embarrassed.

Yuki sighed. “Well, you’re not gonna get anywhere if you don’t ask him. Who knows, you might get a chance to confess if you’re lucky.”

Tenma thought about it for a moment. “Alright then. I’ll ask tomorrow.”

Yuki smiled, glad that Tenma was able to find an opportunity at love. He wouldn’t say it out loud, though, not even to Muku. The friendship they had together is only between him and Tenma, nobody else. He spun back around on his stool and continued working.

...Yeah. It wouldn’t be so bad if Tenma had a boyfriend.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm sure people are wondering if I'll make a second part to "Understanding", and yes, I will. This is just a sneak peek of what the setting will be in the second part, so stay tuned!


End file.
